1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrical connector with a vacuum placement cover, and particularly to an improved vacuum placement cover which can be securely attached to the connector whereby the connector can be reliably moved by a vacuum placement tool during placement of the connector on a printed circuit board.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Vacuum transfer and placement mechanisms are well known in the electronic assembly art and are used for retrieving electronic components, such as surface mounted connectors, from a supply source and transferring them by applying negative air pressure to the connectors and placing them onto a printed circuit board in a pre-selected position for soldering. Surface mount type electrical connectors usually comprise an insulating body with thin, upwardly standing walls defining elongate, upwardly opening grooves in a mating face. Therefore, such electronic components adapted for using vacuum transfer and placement mechanisms usually have flat attachments engagable in a covering relationship with the components. A suction nozzle mouth of the mechanism can adhere to the attachment by suction, allowing automated transfer of the electronic component to a circuit board.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,396,245 discloses an electrical connector having a cover member completely covering a mating groove 51 wherein an elongate, upwardly protruding tongue member 50 is formed. The cover member is designed for suction placement of the connector on a printed circuit board. As is shown on FIG. 1 of the present application, the cover member 55 comprises a panel 552 and a pair of legs 551 depending from a lower face of the panel 552. The pair of legs 551 are insertable into the groove 51 to grip opposite sides of the tongue 50, thereby retaining itself to the connector 5. The panel 552 of the cover member 55 has to be larger than the groove to restrict relative movement of the cover member, thereby avoiding wobble of the cover member on the connector 5. Therefore, this design increases the dimension and weight of the connector assembly, thereby increasing the cost of stocking and transportation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,688,133 discloses a vacuum placement cover 61 having outer engagement legs 621 and opposite inner engagement legs 622 for respectively engaging with outer and inner surfaces of side walls of an electrical connector 6. (See FIG. 2). However, the inner engagement legs 622 are punched from a root portion of the outer engagement legs 621 and extend parallel to the outer engagement legs 621. Therefore, the inner legs 622 having a length shorter than the outer legs 621, which results in an imbalance of forces on the outer and inner surfaces of the side walls of the housing when the cover is engaged with the connector. Therefore, the cover more easily comes off the connector.
Hence, an improved electrical connector with an improved vacuum placement cover is required to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art.
An object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector with a vacuum placement cover having engagement legs firmly gripping opposite sides of a tongue member of the connector and side plates fitting against outer surfaces of the connector housing to firmly secure the vacuum placement cover to the connector without deforming the housing of the connector.
To achieve the above-mentioned objects, an electrical connector assembly in accordance with the present invention includes an electrical connector and a vacuum placement cover. The electrical connector includes an elongate insulating housing having a mounting face for mounting to a printed circuit board and a mating face for mating with a complementary connector. The housing forms a pair of parallel elongate side walls and an elongate tongue member formed between the side walls. A pair of grooves is formed on both sides of the tongue member between the tongue member and each side wall. A plurality of contacts is assembled in opposite sides of the tongue member.
The vacuum placement cover is assembled to a central portion of the mating face of the connector. The vacuum placement cover comprises a cover member and a pair of clamping members formed at opposite ends of the cover member. The cover member has a cover plate with a flat top surface for receiving a vacuum pick-up force to move the connector. Two side plates extend downwardly from opposite lateral sides of the cover plate for abutting against an outer surface of the side walls of the housing. The cover is thus prevented from wobbling when it is assembled to the connector, and at the same time is prevented from deflecting the side walls of the connector inwardly. Each resilient clamping member comprises a top plate and two opposed gripping legs connecting to and extending downward from edges of the top plate for clamping opposite faces of the tongue member.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.